Simply Abu Dhabi XXIV

2 3 7 S I M P LY A B U DH A B I In Spider form with the roof off and the back window folded down, I gave it short, sharp jabs of the throttle so that I could indulge in the glorious turbo whistles and pops from the engine behind my head, while in the closed-roof GTB form, it was still an aural delight to hear it from the sidepod air inlets just behind the doors. While it may look like a mild refresh on the outside over the 458, there’s a lot more underneath that completes the picture. If the steering feels almost go-kart light it’s because the steering rack and dampers are from the 458 Speciale, and it also gets a new generation of that model’s innovative Side Slip Control. The brakes are borrowed directly from the uber-exotic LaFerrari that Simply Abu Dhabi reviewed in edition XXI. The 488 GTB is the manufacturer’s first series production car to get active aerodynamics and there’s also a revised version of Ferrari’s spectacular seven-speed dual clutch gearbox as standard. Initially, going over the same piece of B-grade road I’ve used for many supercars, I was overly cautious and wary that it may bite due to its overly sensitive steering. The back was a bit skittish and I didn’t have the nerve to push on, but once accustomed to the way it handled these bumps, it was a case of biting the bottom lip and going for it, only to be surprised – and relieved – at the other end when it not only did everything I asked of it, but almost before I had asked it. It’s the most intuitive I probably ever want a car to get as there were moments when car and driver clicked like an old husband and wife; the left hand knew the right hand’s movement with little more than a thought impulse. When it comes to the Spider there’s not much difference despite the lack of roof. It shares the GTB’s spring rates which are claimed by Ferrari to be equal to those of the outgoing 458 Speciale, so the point and change of direction is identical. Unlike its prime competitor, the McLaren 650S Spider, the 488 lacks a carbon fibre tub and instead screws panels onto an alloy chassis which adds weight; but a reworking of the alloy composites used in the chassis counteracts to save some of that weight. All up, the Spider is 50kg heavier than the GTB which is the same deficit 458 Spider owners had over the hardtop 458 Italia. There’s an ¬additional vertical aluminium panel next to the front axle and a horizontal one at the rear of the car for added stiffness, and Ferrari claims a 20 percent increase in torsional rigidity as a result. Bottom line to all these stats is that it feels like a big improvement from behind the wheel, but not quite McLaren 650S standard with the roof removed. For Spider owners, the only difference inside is that it now has a keyless start which, to be fair, the 488GTB should have had all along, but it means that it’s now coming for the first facelift.